Some people are born with the natural ability to be leaders and Louisville, KY native, Lee Streatz, is definitely cut from that cloth. Since opening his first barber shop at 18 years-old, Streatz has compiled an impressive portfolio of businesses that earn revenue nationwide.
Lee Streatz, born Lee Streater, currently owns two barber shops and one beauty salon in Louisville, KY, all named Fresh n Clean Hairstylez. However; his fourth business, Streatway Entertainment, is the company that is making its presence felt nationally.Watch Full Movie Online Streaming Online and Download
Under the Streatway Entertainment umbrella is an impressive collection of 17 comedians, 6 music artists, and 3 poets. With all four businesses combined, there are over 60 individuals representing the Streatway brand in multiple states.
Life wasn’t always as comfortable for Streatz as it is today. At age 12, his family fell upon hard times and as a result, he was forced to mature at a faster rate than most kids his age.
“Between the ages 12-16, I was basically homeless. When I was 11 or 12 years-old we got evicted, so that’s when I became a man… I was the middle child of five kids and my two older sisters were living in Compton at the time. My mother and my younger siblings moved in with my grandmother and I would jump around from house to house staying with different relatives and friends… I even slept in a car a couple of times.” – Lee Streatz
Miraculously, he was able to graduate from high school and enroll into Kentucky College of Barbering, becoming a licensed barber at 18 years-old. After completing college he became employed at, Mark’s Culture Cuts, and within six months he opened his first barber shop called Fresh n Clean Hairstylez. By age 21, Streatz opened a second shop under the same name.
The success of the barber shops allowed Streatz to venture out into other areas of business. He developed a rap group and dabbled in comedy before eventually founding Streatway Entertainment in 1997.
Streatz realized that the city of Louisville concealed a great deal of talent that was being overlooked because the city wasn’t on the radar of the major entertainment industries. With that realization his plan was to become the largest independent promoter of local and national talent within the region.
“I seen things from an angle that the talent in Louisville, regardless of the genre, had no promotion behind it. It also had no outlet so I wanted to be one of the main promoters to ever come out of the city… The first celebrity I brought to Louisville was comedian Michael Blackson, about 8 or 9 years ago and we’ve been good friends ever since… Reginald Ballard, who played ‘Bruh Man from the 5th Floor’ on the Martin Lawrence show was the second big act that I brought to town.” – Lee Streatz
Also being an avid writer, Streatz began writing scripts for movies that would later become straight to DVD releases. He has written, funded and produced three movies under the Streatway imprint, with the most successful being Tha Store, starring Reginald ‘Bruh Man’ Ballard.
Tha Store was released in 2014, and was originally sold in selected Walmart locations throughout Atlanta. To date it has sold over 4,000 copies independently.
Upcoming movie projects for Streatway Entertainment include Tha Store 2, starring Michael Blackson and a heist movie entitled The Lyck. The music division of the imprint is currently working on the compilation, Take the Streatway Vol. 2.
Streatz emphasizes that the secret to his success is that he prides himself with providing the best service or product possible.
“I always care more about the show than the money. Money comes and goes and can be replaced. A show can be an epic one night event that can’t be replaced so I always want to have a good event rather than make a lot of money, because the reputation from a good event can go a long way.” – Lee Streatz
The future is looking very bright for Streatz. He is in the process of opening barber shops and beauty salons in Atlanta and Nashville and plans on expanding to several other states. However; his ultimate goal is to open a Black comedy club in Louisville.
“What I see in the future for Streatway is being a promotional hub. In the next 5-10 years imagine 50 artists, whether they are comedians, music artists or whatever…One living in each state pushing Streatway Entertainment…That’s how big Streatway Entertainment is going to be without a major deal.” – Lee Streatz
Streatway Entertainment comedians are currently in rotation at comedy clubs in Louisville, Atlanta, Nashville, Lexington KY, Huntsville, AL, and Clarksville TN.
Streatway also handles road promotion for national comedians such as Reginald Ballard, Tommy Chunn, Michael Blackson and occasionally Gary Owen.
Brad Harrison is a journalist/motivational speaker/entrepreneur and on-air personality. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications with cum laude honors from the University of Louisville. In October 2015, he started UrbanMaxx Magazine to provide positive role models for Urban residents that reside in at-risk-communities and lack positive leadership in their lives.
For booking or advertising – contact Brad Harrison at bradharrison@urbanmaxx.com